How the Tortoise Got Its Shell

The birds were invited to a great feast in the sky. The Tortoise, who had no wings, begged them to help him get there. The birds agreed, and each one plucked a feather and gave it to the Tortoise. With these, he made a pair of wings and flew with them to the sky. As they arrived, the Tortoise, being cunning, suggested that they all take new names for the feast. He chose the name "All of you." When the feast was served, the hosts said, "This food is for all of you." The Tortoise stepped forward and said, "That is my name!" and proceeded to eat the best parts of the meal, leaving very little for the angry birds. As it was time to leave, the birds, furious at his trickery, took back their feathers one by one, leaving the Tortoise stranded in the sky. Desperate, the Tortoise asked the Parrot to deliver a message to his wife: "Tell her to bring out all the soft things from the house and pile them up so I can jump down safely." But the Parrot, also angry, delivered a different message. He told the Tortoise's wife: "Your husband says to bring out all the hard things—the hoes, the mortars, the stones." The wife obeyed. The Tortoise looked down, saw the pile, and jumped. He landed on the hard objects and his shell shattered into a hundred pieces. A medicine-man had to glue him back together, which is why the tortoise's shell is not smooth but is made of many joined-up pieces.